When it comes to nutrition, fiber gets no respect. This lowly, nondigestible nutrient has many health benefits beyond its most celebrated role of moving things through your digestive system.
The average American eats less than half the recommended 25 to 35 grams of fiber a day. Chalk up our fiber deficit to a drive-through diet filled with carbonated soda, sugar, fat and meat.
“We’re eating a lot of refined foods, we’re not eating enough fruits and vegetables,” says Joy Bauer, a registered dietitian and author of “Joy Bauer’s Food Cures: Easy 4-Step Nutrition Programs for Improving Your Body” (Rodale, $18.95).
“Foods that are high in fiber tend to be healthier, lower in calories and more filling.” Fiber is found only in plant foods, not animal-based products.
No matter how chewy the steak, there’s no fiber in it. Ditto for rubbery cheese curds.
There are two kinds of dietary fiber. Some foods are primarily one or the other, while others contain both.
Soluble fiber absorbs water to form a gel-like substance that binds to food, cholesterol, sugars and fats, slowing their absorption into the blood stream.
Insoluble fiber doesn’t dissolve in water and keeps things moving along through your digestive system to promote regularity.
The best place to get it is from real food, not a pill, wafer or powder.
Upgrading your fiber quotient can be as easy as trading a poor source for a better one: brown rice instead of white, whole-grain cereal for the frosted-flake variety, a whole sweet potato for a skinless baked potato.
